1. Field
The present invention relates generally to hand-held personal hygiene devices for cleaning a user's recto-genital area such as following urination, defecation, menstruation, or sweating, and more specifically to such personal hygiene devices which are designed to assist obese, physically challenged, arthritic, and elderly persons to clean their own recto-genital region.
2. State of the Art
Removal of excretory matter from the recto-genital area such as urine following urination, fecal matter following defecation, menses following menstruation, or sweat following sweating by wiping with toilet paper is an important daily activity for healthy individuals which is often taken for granted. Fecal matter which remains on the skin of the recto-genital area following defecation is high in bacteria and viruses and smells bad. The remaining fecal matter causes symptoms including itching, irritation, chafing, and the like. Even worse, infections are possible such as when the person has a pre-existing anal medical condition such as hemorrhoids and the like where the recto-genital skin has openings through which the bacteria and viruses can enter. Likewise, feces and urine contain bacteria and viruses that can cause recto-genital infections in men and women and urinary tract infections in women if not removed following defecation or urination.
The removal of excretory matter from the recto-genital area is particularly troublesome for persons who are obese, arthritic, palsied, or suffer from specific physical disabilities. Such persons may not be able to hold the toilet paper in-hand due to arthritic hands or tremors, reach their recto-genital area due to a lack of range of motion of the arms and/or shoulders to reach behind or in front of themselves particularly to reach their anal region, and/or difficulty in manipulating the toilet paper to effect proper cleaning. Therefore, they may require assistance from another person to effect proper cleaning. This can be embarrassing for the recipient and unsavory for the care giver. Likewise, removal of other excretory matter such as sweat from the recto-genital area is difficult for such persons. Sweat is particularly troublesome for obese persons who sit a lot such as at their job.
In an effort to solve the problem, various mechanical devices have been patented to assist the person to reach their recto-genital area. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,154 issued to Blair on Nov. 14, 2000 is disclosed a personal hygiene device for persons having a physical disability to holding a wash cloth or toilet paper for washing and wiping various parts of the person's body that are difficult to reach due to the physical disability. The personal hygiene device includes respective first and second tubes that fit together telescopically for extending and retracting the device, and a clamping device at a distal end of the second tube adapted for holding the wash cloth or toilet paper for wiping the person's body. Similarly, a hand-held device for gripping toilet paper is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,272,716 issued to Thornton on Aug. 14, 2001. The device includes a pair of opposing jaws that are attached to one end of a curved tubular body with a handle at an opposite end for gripping in-hand. The handle has a push button for actuating the jaws.
While these mechanical devices are generally suitable for the purpose intended, they suffer from several substantial drawbacks. They are difficult to grip in-hand, particularly by persons having arthritic hands. They are quite long yet gripped only at one end providing poor visibility and leverage so it is difficult to place the toilet paper into proper position at the recto-genital area, apply proper pressure, and manipulate to wipe the recto-genital area. They are subject to contamination since the device is re-used, with the contaminated toilet paper being manually removed by hand following wiping and re-loading with fresh toilet paper. They are not compact so as to be portable in a discrete manner such as for use at public restrooms. Finally, they are relatively expensive to manufacture.
There is a need for a personal hygiene device to aid physically impaired users to clean their recto-genital area which: 1) is easy to grip in-hand and use even by persons having arthritic hands; 2) is easy to place the toilet paper into proper position at the recto-genital area, apply proper pressure, and manipulate to wipe the recto-genital area; 3) is completely disposable so as not to be subject to contamination, preferably being flushing down the toilet; and 4) is compact so as to be portable in a discrete manner; and 5) is inexpensive to manufacture using inexpensive materials and automated manufacturing equipment.